DOCSLIB.ORG

The Egyptian Shura Council and the International Experiences

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Egyptian Shura Council and the International Experiences A The Egyptian Shura council and the international experiences 1 The Egyptian Shura council and the international experiences (A.F.A)l^‰]…‚×Ö<êe†ÃÖ]<Øñ]‚fÖ]<ï‚jßÚ <EtJÝJÅD ì†â^ÏÖ] <{< ê΂Ö] <{< íu^Š¹]<Å…^ <{<Q< Äe]†Ö]<Ðe^ŞÖ] <P<{< á]çßÃÖ]<VíÏ Website: www.afaegypt.org Mail: [email protected] Telefax: +202-37629937< Twitter: AFAlternatives Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/AFAlternatives Researcher • Anthony Mughan (USA) • Nouran Ahmed (Egypt) • Mohamed Elagati(Egypt) • Anyim Ude (Nigerian) • JAMES SELFE (SOUTH AFRICA’S) • Mani Shankar Aiyar (India) • Natasha Stott Despoja (Australia) • Nico Schrijver (Netherlands) • Mac Harb (Canada) Publisher: • Arab Forum for Alternatives • Global Partners & Associates Deposit numberV< 18618 / 2012 Publishing and distribution: +2 01222235071 [email protected] www.rwafead.com index UPPER HOUSES IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE BY: ANTHONY MUGHAN ................................................................................................................ 5 BACKGROUND PAPER ON THE SHURA COUNCIL CONSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK AND POLITICAL PRACTICE ARAB FORUM FOR ALTERNATIVES: NURAN AHMED SUPERVISED BY: MOHAMMED ELAGATI .................................... 9 LEGISLATIVE CHALLENGES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: THE NIGERIAN EXPERIENCE BY SENATOR ANYIM UDE ......................................... 25 THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES: SOUTH AFRICA’S “UPPER HOUSE” JAMES SELFE, MP ............................................................................... 33 THE INDIAN UPPER HOUSE (RAJYA SABHA) BY MANI SHANKAR AIYAR MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT, RAJYA SABHA ............................................................. 41 THE AUSTRALIAN SENATE BY NATASHA STOTT DESPOJA .................................... 49 THE ROLE OF THE DUTCH SENATE IN THE PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEM OF THE NETHERLANDS NICO SCHRIJVER ............................................................................ 59 THE CANADIAN SENATE MODEL BY SENATOR MAC HARB .................................. 69 3 Upper Houses in Comparative Perspective By Anthony Mughan Department of Political Science The Ohio State University- Columbus Introduction This chapter is deliberately synthetic, seeking to pull together what we already know about upper houses in the world’s parliaments rather than to add to this body of knowledge. Equally, its goal is not to look in detail at bicameral arrangements in specific cases, but to introduce the reader to the immense variation in bicameral arrangements found in the world today. Its basic theme is that there is no “one size fits all” solution to effective bicameralism. Creating an effective upper house entails hard work, good will among all those involved in the political process and, often, trial and error. Even then, effective bicameralism is not guaranteed. A number of countries have experimented with bicameralism and ended up eliminating their upper house, including, for example Denmark, New Zealand and Sweden since the 1950s. Thus, if a senate is to be effective, the minimum conditions are that the reasons for its creation or reform need to be spelled out and justified in advance, as do its structure and functions, and especially its relationship to the lower house and/or president. Ultimately, successful upper houses can strengthen the regime by enhancing democratic accountability and promoting popular identification with, and support for, the constitutional order. A Global Profile According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, there were 190 national parliaments in the world in 2012. Of these, 76, or 40 per cent, are bicameral in structure and the remaining 60 per cent are unicameral, or have only a lower house. Both types of parliament are found in all regions of the world, while almost all (17 of 20) federal states in the world today have a bicameral parliament. Bicameralism is not the product of a federal state structure, however, since 57 unitary states also have an upper house. Similar variation is found in the way in which individuals become upper house members. Usually, different pathways to membership are found in the same upper house; most members may be directly elected, for example, but some may 5 be appointed. For the most part, however, the membership of 28, or 36.8 per cent, of the world’s upper houses is directly elected, that of another 28 is mostly indirectly elected and that of the remaining 20 houses are appointed by the government, the head of state, or the king. This brief profile of upper houses in the world today gives some idea of the wide variation in their fundamental characteristics. I shall now try to introduce some order into this variation by examining upper houses under three headings: 1. Theory of bicameralism; 2. Powers; 3. Legitimacy. Theory of Bicameralism Why would a country choose to have a bicameral parliament in preference to a unicameral one? What are the advantages of bicameralism? Political theorists have argued that there are two principal justifications for having a parliamentary upper house - reflection and representation. Reflection essentially means the upper house “provides for a second opinion” that can check the actions of a usually popularly elected lower house whose decisions might be hasty and intemperate, even despotic under pressure from voters anxious for change. James Madison, one of the United States’ Founding Fathers, argued that that the popular house is “liable to err…from fecklessness and passion” and that a second chamber might provide “a necessary fence against this danger.” In providing a venue for calm and reasoned deliberation free of electoral pressures, the upper house provides for protection against the potential majority tyranny of the lower house. In checking the lower house, an upper house is also argued to contribute to legislative performance and good governance through reviewing, revising and improving proposed legislation. Thus, for Lord Bryce, a British diplomat and member of the House of Lords, “the chief advantage of dividing a legislature into two branches is that the one may check the haste and correct the mistakes of the other.” Representation concerns the question of whose interests should be protected against potentially tyrannical lower houses? Initially, the answer to this question was class-based. The estates of the realm, the aristocracy, the clergy, and so on, had to be shielded against the onset of political democracy and the power of the masses. As the world has become more democratic, however, the basis of upper house representation has become most commonly territorial, protecting, for example, small states in the U.S. or territorially defined ethnic/linguistic groupings in the newly federalized Belgian state. 6 But there is an argument that the emergence of disciplined, ideological parties has subverted the territorial basis of representation in the struggle for control of the national political agenda. The Australian Senate, although its members are directly elected on a territorial basis, is commonly argued to be a “party house’ rather than a “states’ house.” A similar argument has been made in regard to Germany and, indeed, to the archetypal states’ house, the U.S. Senate. When parties are polarized, upper house members go with their party rather than the territory they represent. Upper House Powers There is immense variation in the distribution of policy making power between upper and lower houses, with the overwhelming norm being some degree of lower house domination. The range stretches from full legislative co-equality to limited powers of delay over certain kinds of legislation. Two factors shape the actual balance of power – constitutional provision and practical politics. In the United States, for example, the constitution guarantees the Senate co-equal legislative powers with the House of Representatives and even gives it unique powers in areas like the confirmation of supreme court justices and diplomats. But, perhaps just as importantly, the U.S. Senate has seized these constitutional guarantees and unfailingly held on to them as smaller states have been intent on not being dominated in the legislative process by their larger counterparts. Such is not always the case, however. Constitutionally speaking, 315 of the 319 members of the Italian Senate are directly elected and enjoy co-equal powers with the Chamber of Deputies. In practice, however, the Senate has generally deferred to the lower house on the ground that that is where the leaders of the major parties hold their elected positions. Italy and the U.S. are far from the norm when it comes to relations between lower and upper houses. The far more common situation is for upper houses to have little or no power to initiate legislation, no power to influence or delay financial legislation and limited powers at best to delay non-financial legislative proposals emanating from the lower house. This power of delay, for example, is 12 months in Britain, 3 months in Poland and two in Spain. Moreover, when the two houses conflict over the content of legislation, various mechanisms exist to reconcile these differences. For example, proposed bills can “shuttle” between the two houses until differences are ironed out or conference committees consisting of members from both houses can be appointed to work out differences in their respective versions of the bill. Generally speaking, though, the lower house has the power ultimately to override obstructionism on the part of the upper house and turn their preferred version of legislative proposals into the law of the land. For example,
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Tea Party and the Muslim Brotherhood: Who They Are and How American News Media Gets It Wrong
    Jeremy Abrams The Tea Party and the Muslim Brotherhood: Who they are and How American News Media Gets it Wrong Jeremy Abrams 1 Table of Content I. Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................ 2 II. Defining Political Parties and their Role in Democracies ................................................................. 2 A. Generally ......................................................................................................................................................... 2 B. Structurally .................................................................................................................................................... 3 C. How the Tea Party and the Muslim Brotherhood Fit the Mold ................................................. 4 III. Brief Descriptions of the Tea Party and the Muslim Brotherhood ............................................. 4 A. The Tea Party ................................................................................................................................................ 5 1. History ......................................................................................................................................................... 5 2. The System in Which it Operates ..................................................................................................... 9 3. Official Status ........................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • News Coverage Prepared For: the European Union Delegation to Egypt
    News Coverage prepared for: The European Union delegation to Egypt . Disclaimer: “This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of authors of articles and under no circumstances are regarded as reflecting the position of IPSOS or the European Union.” 1 . Thematic Headlines Domestic Scene Egyptians in Greece Call for Sacking Envoy Protesters Prevent PM from Exiting Ministry Premises 103,000 Egyptian Expats Vote in 2nd Phase of Elections Sabahi: I Will Stand Against Israel to Protect Palestinian Rights Court to Examine 200 Complaints to Nullify Elections in Cairo, Halt Them in Giza Presidential Hopeful Abu-Ismail: US Contact Huge Victory to Islamists FJP: The Constituent Assembly Hands Cuffs the Parliament Mubarak’s Wealth Advisory Council Holds Its First Meeting El-Ganzouri: The Economic Situation Is Devastating Hatata: SCAF Has No Political Experience SCAF Denies Mulla’s Statement Interior Minister Meets 1000 Officers Elections Updates in Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper. Elections Updates in Al-Tahrir newspaper. MB Guide to Members: Be Modest and Remove Copts’ Fears Investigations of Mohamed Mahmoud Clashes Start within Days General Elections Updates in al-Ahram First Phase Polls Results Annulled in Alexandria’s Third Constituency Al-Nour Calls Cooperation with Freedom and Justice Field Marshal Tantawi visits Tahrir Square Ahmad Zwel Meets Field Marshal Tantawi Elections Updates in al-Akhbar Israel’s Ambassador Arrives Today The Egyptian Mufti is Number 12 on the List of the World’s Most Influential People Sharaf Apologizes 2 Newspapers (12/12/2011) Page: 1 Author: Muhammad Anz Al-Nour Calls Cooperation with Freedom and Justice Liberal parties coordinated to support 51 candidates in the second phase of the elections.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of Political Parties in Promoting a Culture of Good Governance in Egypt Post-2011
    American University in Cairo AUC Knowledge Fountain Theses and Dissertations 6-1-2015 The role of political parties in promoting a culture of good governance in Egypt post-2011 Omar Kandil Follow this and additional works at: https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds Recommended Citation APA Citation Kandil, O. (2015).The role of political parties in promoting a culture of good governance in Egypt post-2011 [Master’s thesis, the American University in Cairo]. AUC Knowledge Fountain. https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/60 MLA Citation Kandil, Omar. The role of political parties in promoting a culture of good governance in Egypt post-2011. 2015. American University in Cairo, Master's thesis. AUC Knowledge Fountain. https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/60 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by AUC Knowledge Fountain. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of AUC Knowledge Fountain. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The American University in Cairo The School of Global Affairs and Public Policy The Role of Political Parties in Promoting a Culture of Good Governance in Egypt Post-2011 A Thesis Submitted to the Public Policy and Administration Department in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Arts By Omar Kandil Supervised by Dr. Amr Hamzawy Professor , Public Policy and Administration, AUC Dr. Lisa Anderson President, AUC Dr. Hamid Ali Associate Professor & Chair, Public Policy and Administration, AUC Spring 2015 1 Acknowledgements There are a few people without which it would have been impossible for me to finish this piece of work.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of Parliament in the Egyptian Constitution
    The Role of Parliament in the Egyptian Constitution Parliament and the New Egyptian Constitution Papers “Parliament and the President” By Prof. Amr Shobaki “Parliamentary Oversight of the Government” By Prof. Mahmoud Kandil “Parliament and the Judiciary” By Georges Fahmy “Parliament and Community Organizations: Local Councils & Civil Society” By Mohamed El-Agati “Parliament and Oversight Agencies: The Central Auditing Organization & the Administrative Control Authority as Models” By Karim Sarhan “A New Vision for the Shura Council” By Ali Fath-Elbab Commentaries by: Prof. Adam Cygan Prof. John McEldowney Global Partners and Associates 2 Executive Summary The challenge facing post-revolution Egypt is to draft a new Constitution which meets the aspirations of all Egyptian citizens and which provides a firm foundation to secure democratic and accountable government in Egypt. Following the fall of the Mubarak regime in January 2011, the process of Constitutional reform provides Egypt with an opportunity to make a break with past and address the inequalities and authoritarian behaviour which characterised the Mubarak regime. Yet despite these being the fundamental stated aims of the revolution, there exist, in the light of President Mursi’s Decree of 22nd November 2012, justified concerns that power is once again being concentrated in the hands of the President without any accompanying checks and balances. The papers in this publication make a significant contribution to the constitutional reform debate in Egypt and represent a diverse range of views from a variety of stakeholders who have participated in the process of drafting the new Constitution. This publication is also extremely timely because it comes at a moment in the drafting process when both internal and external pressures pose certain challenges to securing a final agreement on a Constitution that defines the democratic values and principles which have are essential in post-revolution Egypt.
    [Show full text]
  • Bicameralism
    Bicameralism International IDEA Constitution-Building Primer 2 Bicameralism International IDEA Constitution-Building Primer 2 Elliot Bulmer © 2017 International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) Second edition First published in 2014 by International IDEA International IDEA publications are independent of specific national or political interests. Views expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent the views of International IDEA, its Board or its Council members. The electronic version of this publication is available under a Creative Commons Attribute-NonCommercial- ShareAlike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0) licence. You are free to copy, distribute and transmit the publication as well as to remix and adapt it, provided it is only for non-commercial purposes, that you appropriately attribute the publication, and that you distribute it under an identical licence. For more information on this licence visit the Creative Commons website: <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/> International IDEA Strömsborg SE–103 34 Stockholm Sweden Telephone: +46 8 698 37 00 Email: [email protected] Website: <http://www.idea.int> Cover design: International IDEA Cover illustration: © 123RF, <http://www.123rf.com> Produced using Booktype: <https://booktype.pro> ISBN: 978-91-7671-107-1 Contents 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................. 3 Advantages of bicameralism.....................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Egypt in 2021: Politics, Human Rights and International Relations
    BRIEFING PAPER Number 9193, 8 April 2021 Egypt in 2021: Politics, By Ben Smith, Philip Loft Human Rights and International Relations Contents: 1. Egyptian politics 2. Human Rights: UK and international statements 3. Human Rights: The situation in Egypt 4. Terrorism 5. Defence and International relations www.parliament.uk/commons-library | intranet.parliament.uk/commons-library | [email protected] | @commonslibrary 2 Egypt in 2021: Politics, Human Rights and International Relations Contents Summary 3 1. Egyptian politics 4 1.1 Background: The Arab Spring and Presidency of Mohamed Morsi 4 1.2 2018 Presidential Election 4 1.3 Referendum on extension of presidential term limit 5 1.4 2020 Senate Election 5 1.5 2020 House of Representatives Election 6 1.6 Opposition 6 2. Human Rights: UK and international statements 7 2.1 UK Government statements 7 2.2 UN Human Rights Council Statement 7 2.3 UK trade agreement with Egypt 7 3. Human Rights: The situation in Egypt 9 3.1 Muslim Brotherhood 9 3.2 Media and journalists 11 3.3 NGOs and activists 11 3.4 Coronavirus 12 3.5 Prisoners 13 3.6 Christians 14 3.7 Trade Unions 15 3.8 Gender Equality 16 3.9 LGBT+ people 16 4. Terrorism 17 4.1 Wilayat Sinai 17 4.2 Other terrorist actions 18 5. Defence and International relations 19 5.1 United States 19 5.2 Libya 19 5.3 Russia 20 5.4 Turkey 20 5.5 The Gulf states 21 5.6 Ethiopia and the Nile Dam 22 5.7 Israel 23 Cover page Attribution: Map Land Egypt Geography/image cropped.
    [Show full text]
  • Crisis in Egypt Hearing Committee on Foreign
    S. HRG. 113–420 CRISIS IN EGYPT HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION JULY 25, 2013 Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Relations ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/ U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 90–798 PDF WASHINGTON : 2014 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate Mar 15 2010 15:20 Oct 10, 2014 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 S:\FULL COMMITTEE\HEARING FILES\113TH CONGRESS, 1ST SESSION\2013 ISSUE TE FOREI-43947 with DISTILLER COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey, Chairman BARBARA BOXER, California BOB CORKER, Tennessee BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland JAMES E. RISCH, Idaho JEANNE SHAHEEN, New Hampshire MARCO RUBIO, Florida CHRISTOPHER A. COONS, Delaware RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois JEFF FLAKE, Arizona TOM UDALL, New Mexico JOHN McCAIN, Arizona CHRISTOPHER MURPHY, Connecticut JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming TIM KAINE, Virginia RAND PAUL, Kentucky EDWARD J. MARKEY, Massachusetts DANIEL E. O’BRIEN, Staff Director LESTER E. MUNSON III, Republican Staff Director (II) VerDate Mar 15 2010 15:20 Oct 10, 2014 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\FULL COMMITTEE\HEARING FILES\113TH CONGRESS, 1ST SESSION\2013 ISSUE TE FOREI-43947 with DISTILLER CONTENTS Page Corker, Hon. Bob, U.S. Senator from Tennessee, opening statement ................. 2 Dunne, Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations
    Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations Updated September 30, 2021 Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov RL33003 SUMMARY RL33003 Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations September 30, 2021 Historically, Egypt has been an important country for U.S. national security interests based on its geography, demography, and diplomatic posture. Egypt controls the Suez Canal, which is one of Jeremy M. Sharp the world’s most well-known maritime chokepoints, linking the Mediterranean and Red Seas. Specialist in Middle Egypt’s population of more than 100 million people makes it by far the most populous Arabic- Eastern Affairs speaking country. Although today it may not play the same type of leading political or military role in the Arab world as it has in the past, Egypt may retain some “soft power” by virtue of its history, media, and culture. Cairo hosts both the 22-member Arab League and Al Azhar University, which claims to be the oldest continuously operating university in the world and has symbolic importance as a leading source of Islamic scholarship. Additionally, Egypt’s 1979 peace treaty with Israel remains one of the most significant diplomatic achievements for the promotion of Arab-Israeli peace. While people-to-people relations remain cold, the Israeli and Egyptian governments have increased their cooperation against Islamist militants and instability in the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip. Since taking office, President Biden has balanced some considerations in his approach to U.S.-Egyptian relations, praising Egyptian diplomacy while signaling U.S. displeasure for President Sisi’s continued domestic crackdown. In the year after the United States started facilitating the historic Abraham Accords between Israel and various Arab states, Egypt, which has maintained its peace treaty with Israel since 1979, has earned praise from U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Egypt in Transition
    Egypt in Transition Jeremy M. Sharp Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs September 21, 2011 Congressional Research Service 7-5700 www.crs.gov RL33003 CRS Report for Congress Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Egypt in Transition Summary On February 11, 2011, President Hosni Mubarak resigned from the presidency after 29 years in power. For 18 days, a popular peaceful uprising spread across Egypt and ultimately forced Mubarak to cede power to the military. How Egypt transitions to a more democratic system in the months ahead will have major implications for U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and for other countries in the region ruled by monarchs and dictators. This report provides a brief overview of the transition underway and information on U.S. foreign aid to Egypt. U.S. policy toward Egypt has long been framed as an investment in regional stability, built primarily on long-running military cooperation and sustaining the March 1979 Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty. Successive U.S. Administrations have viewed Egypt’s government as a moderating influence in the Middle East. U.S. policy makers are now grappling with complex questions about the future of U.S.-Egypt relations, and these debates are likely to influence consideration of appropriations and authorization legislation in the 112th Congress. The United States has provided Egypt with an annual average of $2 billion in economic and military foreign assistance since 1979. For FY2012, the Obama Administration has requested $1.551 billion in total aid to Egypt. On July
    [Show full text]
  • The Constitutional Challenges in Post-Mubarak Egypt
    THE CONSTITUTIONAL CHALLENGES IN POST-MUBARAK EGYPT The Constitutional Challenges in Post-Mubarak Egypt MAHMOUD HAMAD* ABSTRACT gypt’s new constitution will be Writing a democratic constitution is the roadmap to a second republic the main task in the transition from that most Egyptians hope will be authoritarianism to democracy. There E free from the tyranny, corruption, and are many opposing views about many nepotism, which were the trademarks challenging questions in Egypt today. The generals believe that they should of Egypt’s political life since 1952. The remain above civilian control while problem, however, is the lack of agree- democrats argue that the army is no ment about the nature of the new consti- different than other state institutions tution. There is a number of competing and hence should be subject to the visions for Egypt’s future: secular ver- scrutiny of elected representatives. In regard to the role of Islam in politics, sus theocratic at one end of the scale and some argue for full implementation civic versus militaristic at the other. Is- of Sharia, while others advocate a lamists, liberals, and leftists will need to completely secular state. Many want come to terms and find a middle ground to scrap altogether the centralized for the new constitution to be drafted in presidential system in favor of a parliamentary regime while others the very short time stipulated. The gen- are afraid that a Westminster form of erals and the politicians would need to government might not be suitable come to agree upon the terms as well. to Egypt’s current stage of political While many Egyptians want the new development.
    [Show full text]
  • FREEDOM in the WORLD 2020 Egypt 21 NOT FREE /100
    3/17/2020 Egypt | Freedom House FREEDOM IN THE WORLD 2020 Egypt 21 NOT FREE /100 Political Rights 7 /40 Civil Liberties 14 /60 LAST YEAR'S SCORE & STATUS 22 /100 Not Free Global freedom statuses are calculated on a weighted scale. See the methodology. https://freedomhouse.org/country/egypt/freedom-world/2020 1/19 3/17/2020 Egypt | Freedom House Overview President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who first took power in a 2013 coup, has governed Egypt in an increasingly authoritarian manner. Meaningful political opposition is virtually nonexistent, as expressions of dissent can draw criminal prosecution and imprisonment. Civil liberties, including press freedom and freedom of assembly, are tightly restricted. Security forces engage in human rights abuses with impunity, and physical security is further undermined by terrorist violence centered in the Sinai Peninsula. Key Developments in 2019 Constitutional amendments that were adopted in a tightly controlled referendum in April further concentrated power in the hands of President Sisi and authorized him to remain in office until 2030. The amendments also undermined the independence of the judiciary and strengthened the military’s role in civilian governance. In September, small protests broke out in several cities to express opposition to the regime’s corruption and economic mismanagement. In response, the authorities detained thousands of people and censored online speech. Political Rights A. Electoral Process A1 0-4 pts Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 0 / 4 https://freedomhouse.org/country/egypt/freedom-world/2020 2/19 3/17/2020 Egypt | Freedom House The president is elected by popular vote for up to two terms.
    [Show full text]
  • Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations
    Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations Updated November 21, 2019 Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov RL33003 SUMMARY RL33003 Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations November 21, 2019 Historically, Egypt has been an important country for U.S. national security interests based on its geography, demography, and diplomatic posture. Egypt controls the Suez Jeremy M. Sharp Canal, which is one of the world’s most well-known maritime chokepoints, linking the Specialist in Middle Mediterranean and Red Seas. Egypt’s population of more than 100 million people makes Eastern Affairs it by far the most populous Arabic-speaking country. Although today it may not play the same type of leading political or military role in the Arab world as it has in the past, Egypt may retain some “soft power” by virtue of its history, media, and culture. Cairo hosts both the 22-member Arab League and Al Azhar University, which claims to be the oldest continuously operating university in the world and has symbolic importance as a leading source of Islamic scholarship. Additionally, Egypt’s 1979 peace treaty with Israel remains one of the most significant diplomatic achievements for the promotion of Arab-Israeli peace. While people-to-people relations remain cold, the Israeli and Egyptian governments have increased their cooperation against Islamist militants and instability in the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip. Personnel moves and amendments to the Egyptian constitution highlight apparent efforts by President Abdel Fattah al Sisi to consolidate power with the help of political allies, including colleagues from Egypt’s security establishment. President Sisi, who first took power in 2013 after the military deposed his predecessor, has come under repeated international criticism for an ongoing government crackdown against various forms of political dissent and freedom of expression.
    [Show full text]